Etymologically
Log in

humid

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 15:29. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • /ˈhjuːmɪd/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Old French humide (“damp, wet”), or directly borrowed from Latin hūmidus (“moist, wet”),[2][3][4][5][6][7] a variant of ūmidus,[2][3][4] probably spelled with h- under the influence of humus (“earth”).[3][4][8] Ūmidus is from ūmeō (“to be moist”),[2][4][6][9] from Proto-Italic *umo- (“wet”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *uhrmo- (“wet”), the source also of ūrīna.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Moist, damp: before 1400, as humide, in Lanfranc's Science of Surgery, according to Barnhart.[4] Etymonline dates it to the early 15th century,[3] the Shorter Oxford to late Middle English,[6] and Merriam-Webster to the 15th century,[5] while the OED, in an entry not revised since 1899, begins with about 1550.[2]

Semantic evolution

The OED's earliest sense is "slightly wet, as with steam or mist".[2] In 1604 it was used of the elements and humours of medieval physiology;[2] in 1800 of a chemical process using liquid, and in 1813 of diseases marked by a moist discharge.[2] Johnson (1755) glossed it "wet; moist; watery", quoting Milton's "humid bow" of Iris.[10]

Timeline

  • before 1400 – humide, moist, in Lanfranc.[4]
  • c. 1550 – moist, damp, in the Complaynt of Scotland.[2]
  • 1604 – of elements and humours in old physiology.[2]
  • 1755 – Johnson: wet, moist, watery.[10]
  • 1800 – of a chemical process using liquid.[2]
  • 1813 – of diseases with a moist discharge.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Containing noticeable moisture; damp, especially of air or weather: a humid afternoon in July.[5][11][2]

Word family

  • humidly
  • humidness
  • dehumidify
  • humidify
  • humidistat
  • humidor
  • subhumid
  • unhumid

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  5. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  8. ^ Weekley, Ernest (1921), An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, London: John Murray
  9. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  10. ^ a b Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  11. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins